Growing Responsibly in Oakland, CA

Born in San Francisco, growing up in Oakland.

About 7 months ago, Propeller made the move to Oakland, CA. As a long-time Oakland resident, I was familiar with the lifestyle and the responsibilities that come with being a resident in any city. What I wasn’t familiar with was the near-requirement to run a socially conscious business in Oakland. Between different cities, social responsibility takes different forms, but we’ll talk more on what this means later.

I’ve always known The Town to march to the beat of its own drum. Home to artists in a very literal sense, the workforce in technology still only accommodates 3.1% of Oakland’s entire workforce. But with rent and space pressures pushing tech companies out of San Francisco, that landscape is quickly shifting, making room for a homogenized group of so-called “techies.”

While the workforce migration began taking foot long ago, companies are just beginning to follow in their footsteps. Now, the real question becomes whether Oakland can stand strong in its goals for “tech-quity”.

Our decision to move wasn’t easy. By the numbers, more than half of our team lived in San Francisco. And Oakland, which is separated by either a bridge or tunnel, seemed strangely distant. Conveniently enough, however, our new Oakland office is only 10 steps from the 12th Street BART stop, which results in minimal commute change — even reducing it for some.

Needless to say, the next question was about safety. A city known by many for its crime-ridden history gave many on our team pause.

“Are you sure there isn’t something else further down Market or maybe further down the San Francisco BART line?”

We looked, but everything we saw would have been a sacrifice to the overall quality of work-life. With a similar budget, we’d be forced into a cramped office space in Mid-Market or in an build significantly further from major public transportation lines. Although Oakland office rent has since spiked, our Mid-Market budget secured nearly 2500 sq. ft. of prime downtown rooftop space, a side office dedicated for conference calls, and a built-in kitchen. Tell me this isn’t a dream.

PC: Me! Just as I was writing this post.

Lastly, I secretly wanted to dispel some of these anti-Oakland fears that I’d never actually witnessed in the 18 years I’ve lived in the East Bay.

Finding comfort in our new home.

What came after our move wasn’t surprising. We naturally began looking more favorably at designers and developers living in Oakland to join our team.

The fears about crime and hostility were dispelled within the first week. Situated in Downtown Oakland, we have immediate access to great pockets of food — between Chinatown, the City Center, KONO, and Uptown — and the team continues to gain more exposure to the city as they explore further out from our HQ.

But our team’s assimilation is really only the first step. The second step requires more work, passion, and will continue as long as the company stays in Oakland.

Tech-quity is not a single person’s job.

Before our move last year, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf began to use the word tech-quity to describe her vision for sustainably growing the technology sector in Oakland. It comes with a careful balance of knowing where and when to leverage government incentives against what she believes is “the right thing for companies to do.”

While noble, enforcing companies to do right by Oakland, and keep Oakland … well Oakland, is incredibly difficult. This is where established companies in the East Bay need to do their part — to embody city goals in company vision, morals, and values.

Along with our company ambitions for growth, expansion, and creativity, is an equally important goal to sustainably support Oakland and it’s goals.

Where should we start?

1. Practice Inclusivity.

Understanding that city growth often implies a migration of workforce, our company needs to be mindful of inclusion. Collectively, as ambassadors to tech companies in Oakland, we need to look for ways to empower long-time Oakland residents to obtain jobs at our companies.

2. Contribution and Charity.

Either indirectly or directly, contribution and charitable giving helps cities at a base level. With hundreds of causes, there’s certainly a subset of people or organizations that represent the same values or end product of our companies. Find, identify, and collaborate towards the future.

For Propeller, that task was easy. Our generalized skillset in “design and development” makes us a perfect candidate for education and digital literacy. In a past life, I worked with a group now called Oakland Digital, whose goal is to empower youth with the skills and knowledge that technology companies are looking for.

And with organizations like the newly formed Innovation Lab at Youth Radio coming to life every day, there’s little excuse to find the right organization to thrive with.

3. Leave the Office.

The next best thing to bringing people into your office is getting your people out of the office. It’s been a long-taught strategy by lean startup philosophy that the best way to learn about your audience and build the right product is to talk to the that audience and build a presence.

Not everyone is going to be the best sample set for feedback, but many of the people you’re surrounded by will be your users or provide unique insights.

Invite local people to coffee and ask their feedback on your products. Join Meetups to add your opinions and practice listening t0 others. Be present to support local organizations that are promoting tech-quity.

4. Rep Your City. Love Oakland.

This goes without saying and is easily the most fun part. Go to Oaklandish in Downtown Oakland and pick up an Oakland or “The Town” t-shirt. Or rep Propeller and Oakland at the same time with our sweet custom designed city-spirit shirt. (More details soon on this print — email us if you’re really interested).

Go to an Oakland A’s game. Watch the Warriors, yes this too is representing Oakland even though they’ll soon be in San Francisco. Go to a Raiders game, you’ll be fine.

Go ahead and invite your friends.

About Pre-Oakland Propeller

Propeller is a software design and development consultancy, now located in Oakland, that works with brands and companies to support their growth into emerging digital platforms.

Our story began in a San Francisco co-working space, like many other startup stories. But for us, the location was more strategic than financial. While the perks and monthly pricing were a definite benefit for early stability, our positioning was meant for networking and growth.

As time progressed, so did the Propeller name. Our client roster became larger and more well-known along with the skills of our increasingly diverse team. We moved once again to a larger co-working space in San Francisco, before quickly realizing a dedicated space was the most suitable next step.

Get Involved

1. East Bay Tech Equity
2. Kapor Center for Social Impact
3. Youth Radio
4. Oakland Digital
5. Qeyno Labs
6. Hack the Hood
7. Telegraph Academy
8. Hidden Genius Project
9. Black Girls Code

References

1. Opening Up in Oakland by Khari Johnson
2. Creating an Equitable Tech Ecosystem in Oakland by Catherine Bracy
3. Oakland Uber.0 by Yung Rama
4. Why are all my friends moving to Oakland? by Broke-Ass Stuart in The Bold Italic
5. Pandora, Uber, And Beyond: Tech Comes To Oakland by Pendarvis Harshaw in Youth Radio
6. 5 ways Oakland can preserve its soul in a tech boom by Joe Garofoli